On Monday 22 March, the Council of the European Union sanctioned eleven Burmese officials responsible for the 1 February coup and the subsequent and ongoing crackdown on peaceful protesters in the country.
“The number of murders has reached an unbearable level”, explained German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, among others, in justification of the adoption of restrictive measures consisting of an asset freeze and a visa ban. According to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, 250 people have been killed by the army.
Among those subject to the sanctions are ten members of the armed forces (Tatmadaw), including the Commander-in-Chief, Min Aung Hlaing, and his deputy, Soe Win. Lieutenant General Myint Swe, the country’s former Vice-President until 1 February 2021 and current Acting President has also been sanctioned, as has Lieutenant-general Sein Win, former Minister of Defence, and his successor to that post, General Mya Tun Oo.
The only civilian facing these measures is the new chair of the Union Election Commission, Thein Soe, for his role in cancelling the results of the 2020 elections.
In order to adopt these sanctions, the EU has broadened the criteria for their designation beyond human rights violations. It is now possible to sanction “individuals whose actions, policies or activities undermine democracy or the rule of law, or individuals who carry out or support actions that threaten the peace, security and stability of Myanmar/Burma”.
Similarly, “legal persons, entities and bodies that are owned by the Burmese armed forces or that they control or in respect of whom they generate revenue, support or benefit the armed forces” may also be subject to their assets being frozen.
According to Mr Borrell, such measures should be adopted “soon” by the EU.
See the decision: http://bit.ly/3f5uL4D (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)